Game apparatus.



R. T. DAILY.

GAME APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 3. 1915. RENEWED MAY 8.1918.

L fi fi Patented Dec. 17,1918.

III/II III zzz la zzenii or. EECQQWZ ICE.

RICHARD 'I'. DAILY, OF CHICAGO,

ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTH T0 CHARLES E.

LORD, OF WILMETTE, ILLINOIS.

GAME APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

Application filed April 3, 1915, Serial No. 18,917, Renewed May 8, 1918. Serial No. 233,370.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD T. DAILY, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

My invention relates to devices for usein the game of golf, or means for increasing the efficiency and accuracy of the putting stroke of any game having certain of the characteristics of golf.

Great difliculty has been experienced by golf players in obtaining a device which would permit them to practice the putting stroke of the game of golf indoors, or off the links. Many forms of devices have been suggested, but practically all either make the stroke too easy or too diflicult, and, therefore, tend to interfere with the players form, if not absolutely spoil his stroke.

To solve this problem I have developed a putting disk or device capable of indoor or outdoor use, consisting of a truncated cone-like member provided with a central depression or opening of any desired diameter, preferably of the same diameter as the standard golf hole, acting as a receptacle for the ball. The lateral surface; that is, the annular surface between the periphery of the disk and the central receptacle, should be concave, preferably with a parabolic section, so that it will be necessary for the ball to overcome an increasing resistance, or retarding action, during its movement from the periphery of the disk toward the central receptacle.

From another aspect, the device may be used in the standard game of outdoor golf as a substitute for the ordinary golf hole and readily moved from one part of the green to another Without injuring the green in any manner. In the form for outdoor use the device may be provided with means for anchoring it in position so as'to prevent its accidental displacement, and may be provided with a removable or detachable plate which acts as a bottom for the central receptacle.

1"" I invention will be more clearly unood by reference to the accompanying ings, of which igure 1 represents perspective view or. the preferred form of my improved putting disk;

Fig. 2 represents a sectional elevation of the form of the disk shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 represents a sectional elevation of a modified form of the device provided with a removable central plate; and

Fig. 4 represents a plan view, on smaller scale, of the modification shown in Fig.3, with the central plate removed.

In the form shown in the drawings the disk or device is presented as a truncated cone-like member 5 having a circular base or periphery 6. The device is provided with a central opening or depression 7 to act as the receptacle for one or more golf balls, as indicated at 8. The bottom plate 9 of this central receptacle may be formed integral with the annular cone-like portion of the device, as shown at 9 in Figs. 1 and 2, or may be made removable or detachable, as shown at 10 in Fig. 3. I If made removable, the plate 10 may be held in position in any desired manner; for instance, it may rest on the lugs 11, shown in Figs. 3 and ":h- The plate 10 may be provided, if desired, with the spike or projection 12, which may be driven into the ground to anchor the putting disk in position when it is subjected to outdoor use. The anchoring spike 12 is made detachalble from the plate 10 so that the form of device shown in F ig.'3 may be used for outdoor or indoor use either with or withoutthe plate 10.

The device, which is preferably made of metal, is designed so that it will not be displaced by the impact of the ball against its sides or against the wall of the central receptacle. Furthermore, any part of the device may be provided with additional weights, if so desired.

The most essential feature of my inven tion, however, is the shape and location of the lateral surface 13 of the truncated conelike member 5 relative to the central receptacle for the ball and to the ground or floor. This lateral surface should be concave in section. Furthermore, as I have ascertained by careful study during a long period of experimentation and practical use of the de Vice, a section through this lateral surface should, preferably, follow a parabola, as shown by the continuation of the parabolic curve at 14: in Fig. 2, so that the ball will be gradually and increasingly retarded as it moves from the comparatively fiat periphery toward the central receptacle 7. The upper circular edge 15 0f the central receptacle should preferably be made sharp, and the wall 16 of the receptacle vertical so that the ball will drop immediately into said. receptacle when it has passed over the edge 15.

In practical operation the device may, if desired, be used as the basis of a very interesting series of games; for instance, it is possible to become so expert in putting golf balls, either on the green or indoors on a rug or bare floor, as to pyramid a plurality of balls in the central receptacle. However, to increase the efiiciency and accuracy of the putting stroke, the player should place the golf ball at any desired distance from the putting disk and then, by careful and studied use of the proper form of putting stroke, cause the ball o ride up on the lateral surface of the putting disk, where, if the stroke is straight and accurate, the ball will receive the. proper retarding action and will drop into the central receptacle without any tendency to jump out on the other side.

In the appended claims it is my aim to cover any obvious modification of my invention, although I have illustrated and described the preferred forms.

What I claim as new is:

1. A putting disk consisting of a truncated cone-like member provided with acentral receptacle for the ball and having its lateral surface concave in section.

2. A putting disk consisting of a truncated cone-like member provided with a central receptacle for the ball and having its lateral surface parabolic in section.

3. putting disk consis s? of a truncated cone-like member provided with a central receptacle for the ball, and a. removable bottom plate for said receptacle.

4.. A putting disk consisting of a truncated cone-like member provided with a central receptacle for the ball, a removable bottom plate for said receptacle, and means attached to said plate to anchor the disk in position on the ground.

5. A putting disk consisting of a truncated cone-like member having a circular base and provided with a circular central opening for the ball, periphery elevated above the base, the lateral surface between the base and the periphery of the central opening being concave in section, the lower portion of the section being substantially parallel to the plane of the supporting surface.

6. A putting disk consisting of a truncated cone-like member having a circular base and provided with a circular central opening for the ball, the opening having its periphery elevated above the base, the lateral surface between the base and the periphery of the central opening being concave in section, the lower portion of the section being substantially parallel to the plane of the supporting surface and changing its curvature toward its upper portion with a gradually increasing angle to the-supporting sur face so that the ball is forced to overcome a gradually increasing resistance or retarding action during its movement from the base toward the periphery of the central opening.

testimony'whereof l affix my signature.

RlGHARD T. DAILY.

the opening having its. 

